The Iconography of Early Anglo-Saxon Coinage: Sixth to Eighth Centuries

241 Pages·2003·6.72 MB·English

by  Anna Gannon

Medieval History and Archaeology
General Editors
JOHN BLAIR HELENA HAMEROW
The Iconography of Early
Anglo-Saxon Coinage
This page intentionally left blank
THE ICONOGRAPHY
OF EARLY
ANGLO-SAXON
COINAGE
Sixth to Eighth Centuries
ANNA GANNON
1
1
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Acknowledgements
It is with great pleasure that I wish to acknowledge all the help and support I
have received over the years I have been at work on a task that I have greatly
enjoyed.
First of all, my deepest gratitude to George and Isabel Henderson, who first
suggested the idea of looking at Anglo-Saxon coinage, and to Mark Blackburn
of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, who has cheerfully and patiently super-
vised my numismatic work over many years. I have found matching support,
kindness, and friendship in Oxford and in London: sincere thanks to Michael
Metcalf, Arthur MacGregor, and Nicholas Mayhew for much good advice and
access to the Ashmolean and its collection, and equally to Marion Archibald,
Leslie Webster, and Gareth Williams at the British Museum for their kindness
and generosity in time, advice, and resources.
My gratitude to Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge, my alma mater, and the
British Academy for supporting my research, morally and financially. Sincere
thanks to the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art for most generously
awarding me a grant to assist with the production of the book.
During my research I have had the privilege of coming into contact with many
experts who have given of their time and expertise and helped in innumerable
ways. The book is better for their advice, but all the mistakes I claim as my own.
For reasons of brevity, I shall simply list their names alphabetically, but each
should be followed by a personal tribute of gratitude for the help, inspiration,
and in many cases the genuine friendship that I have derived. My sincere thanks
go to:
Martin Allen, Mark Atherton, Charlotte Behr, Paul Binski, Donald Bullough,
Derek Chick, Mark Clarke, Rosemary Cramp, Philip de Jersey, David Dumville,
Bruce Eagle, Richard Emms, Märit Gaimster, Helen Geake, Philip Grierson,
Karl Hauck, Jane Hawkes, Michael Herren, Carola Hicks, David Hill,
Catherine Hills, John Hines, Jakob Holm, Deborah Howard, David Howlett,
Lars Jørgensen, Catherine Karkov, Simon Keynes, Kevin Leahy, John
Maddicott, Jean Michel Massing, Rosamond McKitterick, Audrey Meaney,
Janet Nelson, John Niles, Éamonn Ó Carragáin, Jennifer O’Reilly, Gale
Owen-Crocker, Anne Pedersen, Steven Plunkett, Arent Pol, David Pratt, Anneli
Randla, Frank Siegmund, George Speake, Lucia Travaini, Niamh Whitfield,
Rotraut Wolf, Michael Wood, Patrick Wormald.
A particular note of gratitude goes to Prof. G. W. de Wit in Rotterdam, who
kindly granted me access to his superb collection of over 360 sceattas and
allowed me to use his photographs to illustrate my work. Having first-hand
vi Acknowledgements
experience of such an outstanding collection, and being allowed to keep a
permanent photographic record of it has been immensely useful. I am also
grateful to Tony Abramson, for permission to reproduce coins from his
collection.
Many thanks also to the people who kindly helped with the images for the
books: Myke Clifford, Ken Jukes, and Sarah Ward.
An enormous debt for their kindness and help is due to my editors, Helena
Hamerow and John Blair, and Anne Gelling at the Press.
In the private sphere, I do owe a great deal to the goodwill and interest of very
many good friends, and particularly to my family for their loving forbearance.
To all my deepest gratitude and affection.
A.G.
Cambridge,
Pentecost 2002
Contents
Abbreviations x
Introduction 1
PART I. NUMISMATIC BACKGROUND
1. Numismatic Background of Early Anglo-Saxon England 7
The End of the Roman System 7
Alternative Uses of Coins 8
The Beginning of Coinage: Gold Issues 10
Silver Issues 12
Offa’s Coinage 13
Manufacturing of Coins 14
Die-Cutters and Moneyers 15
Patronage 16
The Function of the Coinage 17
Mints 18
Chronology 18
Classifications 19
PART II. ICONOGRAPHY
2. The Bust 23
The Head 25
Facing Heads 25
Bareheaded Portraits 30
Bareheaded Portraits of Offa 31
Encircled Heads 34
Confronting Heads 37
Female Portraits 39
Heads and Headdresses 42
Crowns 42
Diadems 45
Helmets 51
Rendering of Drapery 54
Schematic Drapery 55
Crossed-Over Drapery 58
Offa’s Drapery 59
Armour 62
viii Contents
Attributes 63
Hands 63
Hands Holding Crosses 65
Hands Holding Cups 66
Hands Holding Sprigs 67
Bust and Crosses 69
Bust and Vegetation Motifs 71
Bust and ‘Tridents’ 72
Bust and ‘Star’ 74
Bust and Sceptre 75
Bust and Bird 77
3. Human Figures 79
‘Victory’ and Angels 79
The Two Emperors 84
Single Figure between Crosses 87
Single Figure with Vegetation Motifs and Crosses 93
Standing Figures with Cross and Bird 95
Seated Figures 98
Two Standing Figures 101
The Archer 105
4. Animal Iconography 107
Birds 107
Birds on Crosses 107
Birds with Crosses 112
Birds with Cross and Fledgling 114
Birds and Snakes 116
Birds in Vine-Scrolls 117
Peacocks 120
The Hen 123
Lions 125
Aldfrith’s Lions and the Northumbrian Tradition 125
East Anglian Lions 127
The Tale of Two Panthers 131
Facing Lions 134
Snakes 136
Motif-Encircling Snakes 136
Rolled-Up Snakes 138
Whorls of Snakes 141
Offa’s Snakes 142
Wolves 144
The She-Wolf 145
Contents ix
Backward-Looking Animals 148
Fantastic Hybrids 151
The Female Centaur 151
Winged Quadrupeds and Other Hybrids 154
5. Reverses with Crosses, Standards/Saltires, and Porcupines 157
Crosses 157
Latin Crosses 157
Greek Crosses 160
Marigolds 165
Crossed Instruments 167
Offa’s Crosses 168
Standards and Saltires 171
Porcupines 176
6. Conclusion 182
Bibliography 194
Index 219